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<title>Alone together| Venom fic| by KINGREGGIE</title>
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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/26726632">Alone together| Venom fic|</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/KINGREGGIE/pseuds/KINGREGGIE'>KINGREGGIE</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Venom (Movie 2018)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Basically Writing my own second movie lol, Eddie is the best Dunkle, Fanfic AU, Found Family, Original Character - Freeform, Post-Venom (Movie 2018)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>In-Progress</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-09-30</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-10-02</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-06 09:01:35</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>General Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>4</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>7,851</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/26726632</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/KINGREGGIE/pseuds/KINGREGGIE</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Months after the presumed death of Carlton Drake, the lost Symbiote that escaped the same night of the one called 'Venom' finds it's way to the neighborhood of fifteen year old Tessa Ormond. The two meet, and that lost Symbiote bonds with Tess; quickly meeting Eddie soon after. Eddie just can't let this kid handle living with an alien all on her own, taking her under his wing- hoping like hell she's not hunted by the hidden remnants of the Life foundation. Looks like he's got another organization to burn, and this time, he's got more than himself to protect.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>17</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>1. Escape</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Ahh here we are, I just had to do a wonderful prologue to this. Associating Venom to this new Symbiote early, it seems. Also I really just wanted to try my hand at writing from an alien's perspective. Somewhat at least. I wonder if you'll find out this one's name, it's hidden somewhere in here ;)<br/>Anywhoo, hope you all like it! I know I do &lt;3</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>A young man curls up into a ball in the corner of this confinement. Sweat rolls down his forehead, getting in his eyes and stinging him slightly. His breathing is erratic, unstable, his body slowly shutting down. At least the ambient blue light is calming. It’s easy on human eyes, making him able to see someone standing in front of another cell. The figure seems stressed, turning around and grabbing something from the wall. </p><p>Thud.</p><p> </p><p>
  <strong>Thud.</strong>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em> <strong>Thud.</strong> </em>
</p><p>Glass shatters from some ways away, the whole area is bathed in red light. Flickers of white disoriented and confuse the man, along with the creature inside him. Blurry eyes dart up, seeing hissing smoke and two figures on the floor, one is struggling to free itself from the other’s grasp. He can hear shouting, the one on the ground is trying to reason with the attacker. Who is that person?</p><p>
  <em>What’s happening over there?</em>
</p><p>The tense man doesn’t move, he doesn’t dare even shift. Things are much too chaotic; too much noise. An alarm is sounding, his heartbeat races, his breathing becomes shallow. The figure that was once on the ground is fighting more figures. People the man recognized as guards of this place. That’s not good, something is wrong. Muzzle flares from firing guns light up the room, scaring the man even more. The mix of the red, white and yellow strobe lights is hurting his head. </p><p>In a split second, the figure fighting the guards is thrown into the front of the young man’s cell. The glass cracks and buckles under the sheer speed at which the person was thrown, something malfunctions, causing steam to erupt from within the cell.</p><p>It hurts, it’s hurting and it’s scary and it needs to <em>stop</em>. </p><p>Unable to cope, the young man bolts to his feet, slamming his hands over his head. He can’t escape it, why does it hurt so bad? In one last ditch effort to get away, he barrels through the cracked glass doors. It works, the pain dwindles and fades, but the panic does not. This place is bad, get out. <strong>Escape</strong>. </p><p>The young man isn’t viable anymore, it’s breaking down and it’s rejecting whatever creature within. Emerging from his chest, a black mass leaks onto the floor. Tendrils pull it along the floor, crawling quickly, grabbing onto a guard’s boot. It adheres to the shape, blending seamlessly with the dark shoe. Stay hidden, <em>get out.</em> </p><p>Yelling and panic, more chaos. Without eyes, it’s hard to see what exactly is going on. The men are chasing something- someone. Someone who has something within them that is needed. </p><p>Each footfall is like a punch, the vibrations of boots colliding with solid ground rattles it even more. It doesn’t understand where it’s going, it’s not able to think clearly. It’s unsafe when not bonded to something, it knows that much. It’s only hope is that it finds a possibly suitable host, away from this place of noise and pain. Away from all the beings it can’t connect with. What lies beyond the white walls? It’s going to find out soon.</p><p><em>Very</em> soon in fact, because the smooth tile gives way to uneven terrain, the impact of running isn’t as jarring as it was before. The black mass lets go of the guard’s shoe, having to weave around others just to stay hidden. At first it fears that the men with weapons are after it, but the sound travels, growing distant. There’s a big opportunity here and it’s taken immediately. The black creature travels quickly, listening, feeling for something alive. A host, possibly. Host brings food, food keeps it alive. One simple instinct leads it to an animal. It smells the creature’s warmth, it’s drawn to the beating heart. <em>Take it</em>. Soundlessly, the blackness strikes, sinking into the creature’s flesh and successfully bonding with this host.</p><p>A Bird. It takes off, startled, ascending high into the sky. With the addition of eyes, the parasitic being can see where exactly it’s going. Behind it is that building, that place of fear. Desperately, it wants to get as far away from that place as possible. Looking out into the distance, there’s something. More buildings, more people. Hosts? The parasite knows this current host will not last, a switch must be made, and soon. It’s torn though; does it go to all those buildings or does it stay within the trees? Instinct compels, pushing it forward, towards the place in the distance. The lure of potential hosts is too powerful to resist, the fear of death too intense to ignore. </p><p>The robin continues, flying in accordance with what the parasite demands. Right towards San Francisco. </p><p>Some time passes, the bird lands. It grows weaker with every passing minute, so once again the black thing removes itself from the bird, resorting to scent based location. The texture of what the bird landed on is good for climbing. Lots of cracks and holes to hang onto. It’s cold and hard, solid like stone. It crawls down, lurking onto flat ground. Something living is close, very close. There’s no time to waste, the lurking creature latches onto the new being, forcing itself within. This bond isn’t as strong, but being able to see outweighs the need for a better host, just for a bit. </p><p>With it’s new parasite, a stray cat finds its way onto the sidewalk, turning a corner to see the cast expanse of the city. Somewhere here has to hold that <em>perfect</em> bond, all it takes is patience. Something the lurking creature has an abundance of. Without a proper host, it’s situation is constantly dire. Patience is out of necessity now. </p><p>Already becoming tired, the tabby feline marches forth, deeper into the city. Meanwhile, the parasite feeds. Consuming the liver, then the kidney, then the muscles themselves. A day and a half passes, what used to be a cat has collapsed in an alley. There is nothing left to take from it now. It lasted longer than expected, but the alien fed too quickly, now the animal is dying. It has to leave.</p><p>From animal to animal, person to person. Travelling by shoe or by bird, the alien searches. It leaves half dead animals in it’s wake, eventually reaching a more sparsely populated area. Another stray cat is it’s next host, this one is very easy to host with. </p><p>Into this area it goes. Always sensing, always looking for the perfect connection. If it doesn’t find that match soon, it might not have many more chances to try.</p><p>It’s running out of time.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0002"><h2>2. It's probably just dehydration</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>(chapter notes are being weird, the notes at the end of this are for the first chapter! Sorry for any confusion)</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>God school lasts <em>forever</em>, especially when all you do is watch the clock slowly tick time away. Ten minutes feels like an hour, and the utter despair you feel when you think class is almost over just to find it’s <em>barely begun</em> is absolute agony. Luckily, the young spirit is free, earbuds in, playlist on shuffle. She’s heard each and every one of these songs at least five times, but that doesn’t matter. She gets lost in the rhythm all the same, nodding her head slightly to the beat. </p><p>She’s glad that the air has a slight chill to it, as it gave her an excuse to overdress for the climate. Black jacket, hoodie lined with a dull white fluff. There’s not much of a reason to have the hood up, so it’s not, but it’s just as cozy as it being up. She doesn’t really <em>need</em> such a bulky hoodie, but it’s for peace of mind. Comfort’s hard to come by sometimes. </p><p>Where to next? She might as well make a pit-stop at home, dump the heavy ass backpack in favor of a smaller bag. Her little messenger’s satchel, handy, convenient and low-key stylish all at the same time. She could also pick up her skateboard, but she still needs to practice more before she actually uses it to travel around the city. </p><p><em>You could totally practice by using it to travel around the city</em>, her brain helpfully points out. A rush of biting anxiety makes her imagine falling face first into the sidewalk, which quickly shuts the internal chastising smartass right up. If she’s gonna fall, she’s not falling where countless people could see it. </p><p>Brushing her hair out of her face, Tessa stops at a corner, weighing her options. Pit stop at home sounds good, hopefully she can dodge her parents and be in and out quick enough to have the rest of the day to herself. Not like her parents ask that much of her anyway, considering they’re always busy. Still, sometimes talking to them is just stressful. </p><p>Ugh, but her backpack is so damn <em>heavy</em>. </p><p>Quick stop by home it is. </p><p>Continuing down the path, it doesn’t take long for her to march up the porch to the small apartment complex, up the single flight of stairs and three doors down to the left. Hunching over awkwardly to unlock the door with the key on her necklace, Tess enters her home. The front door leads right into the living room, which goes into the kitchen. There, her mother absentmindedly cooks, “Welcome back hun, how was school?” The raven haired woman asks, not really sounding interested. </p><p>This song and dance every day quickly became redundant, but the girl forces a small smile, pulling her backpack off with a strained sigh, “Nothin’ special, like always.” Tess shrugs, rolling her shoulders. </p><p>Her mother finally casts a glance over, gesturing at her with a fork, “Isn’t that jacket a bit much for today? It’s not that cold.” </p><p>The astute observation grates on Tess’ nerves. She knows her mom doesn’t really mean to come off as judgy, but holy hell does that not matter. Still stings, just a bit, “I like this jacket.” She states, turning to the right to go up the stairs and escape this conversation. </p><p>Mom doesn’t say anything else, thank god. Crawling up the stairs is always faster, and just more fun, so up she goes even further, reaching her small room- it smells good in here. Like home, true home. Her mood is quickly repaired, and the satchel is retrieved. These shoes suddenly aren’t good enough, and are hastily taken off. Her mismatch pair of red and blue are much better, the blue with black laces; the red with white. Once those are tied, she checks to make sure her wallet is in her bag- which it is, and it’s just stuffed with a bunch of bills. Perfect, saving up and not getting anything for Christmas last year other than money was a wonderful idea. </p><p>Practically throwing herself downstairs, the girl looks to her mom before she goes, “I might stop by Mrs. Chen’s, you want anything?” </p><p>“No, but thank you. Your father might want something, could you call him when you get here?” Tess’ mom responds with a smile. Judgy comment forgiven. </p><p>She nods, giving a smile back, “Sure, c'ya later.” And out she goes. That actually wasn’t so bad. Rushing out of the building, Tess is back on the streets. The more she walks along the familiar route, the more dense the city gets. She’s not going to that little shop right away, she’s just not in the mood to hide in her cave of a bedroom right now. Besides, it’s a wonderful day, there’s stuff to see, people to watch and the park is hopefully free of any snotty children. </p><p>Music back on, the tune takes hold once again. Within five minutes, the park comes into sight, it’s wedged in a small empty space between shops. And hurrah! No one’s here. Screw using the gate, she jumps over the short fence instead, crawling into the tube slide from the bottom. Such a rebel, life’s good. </p><p>What’s going on with the world lately? Open up twitter, such a reliable source of news. She knows it’s not actually reliable, it’s just a clusterfuck of what’s popular and it’ll get her caught up faster than having to just look shit up on google. Huh, here’s something interesting. That big space corporation- the Life foundation is being shut down completely. A new thing is taking its place, apparently. The Atlas corporation. Sheesh, what will those people be up to? Ok, that’s enough twitter for one day. Why the hell does she still even have the app? It’s beyond her, really. Ten minutes of scrolling and she’s already done. Tumblr is so much more her speed. </p><p>She goes to open it, but something stops her. A noise, a gross noise. Something that sounds like it’s dying echoes off the brick walls surrounding the park and it’s <em>very</em> interesting. Call it morbid curiosity if you want, but it gets Tess sliding down the tube, her eyes scanning for the source. </p><p>It’s like a gurgle, and it’s coming from an alley just behind the playground area. Time to investigate. <em>You would die instantly in a horror movie</em>. Shush brain, this could be cool. Climbing over the fence, green eyes narrow, focusing on a thing. A dead thing, probably. It’s all black, it looks vaguely like a cat. Or… Like tar? “What the hell?” She mutters, grinning. There’s no way in a million years she’s touching it with her bare hands, hell no. There’s a little twig right here, a perfect poking stick to see what this thing is. </p><p>The weird black mass shies away from the stick at first, gargling more. It’s so weird, like nothing she’s ever seen before. It’s not an animal, surely, it can’t possibly be an animal. The prodding continues, the stick sinks into the thing. What? That’s so freaking weird- </p><p>All it takes is a blink. A blink and she misses the lightning fast bolt of the black blob up the stick and onto her hand. Her hand feels- it just <em>feels</em>, like something she’s never felt before and it makes her shout and stumble back. What the hell? Tessa’s heart races, she shakes her whole body like her jacket is made of spiders. Where did the thing go? What just happened? </p><p><em>Ok, calm down, rationalize</em>. She hasn’t had water recently. She barely drinks water, how she’s even alive right now is a mystery. Go get some, it’s probably just a dehydrated hallucination. But that makes no sense, she’d be half dead if she were that thirsty. No, shut up, go get food and water now. It’s just a tweak out, she’s just being a freak. Water time. </p><p>Once she gets to her feet, she brushes herself off. She’s fine. Everything’s fine and nothing weird happened at all. Her breath is still unsteady, that rush of adrenaline was oddly fun, in a way. A chuckle escapes her as she goes around the outside of the fence to make her way to Mrs. Chen’s shop.</p><p>She can’t… Focus on her music anymore. It’s just too much, which isn’t normal at all. Trying to listen to it just stresses her out more, so the earbuds are taken out and put in her pocket. Just relax, it’s fine. Her hands are shaking, everything is amplified and it’s really not helpful right now. </p><p>The shop is just down the street, some guy walks out, looking like he was waving Chen goodbye. Huh, ok, another regular. He’s got a nice jacket, dark brown leather, probably a bitch to clean. He walks past, letting Tess pick up her pace and duck into the store.</p><p>The place is much more relaxing than the loudness of cars and construction outside. Mrs. Chen nods, “Hello.” Always such a wonderful greeter. </p><p>Tess only hums, giving a half smile while going right for the freezers. Water, the idea of something like Pepsi or soda just makes her stomach churn. Ugh, god, she feels- like, sick? Hot, <em>really</em> hot. Shit. She grabs the biggest bottle she sees, popping it open even before she gets to the counter to pay, “Mm- sorry, just needed a drink.” </p><p>Mrs. Chen waves a dismissive hand, “No worries, just a dollar.” </p><p>A deft hand digs through the little bag, pulling out two dollars on accident, “ah, keep the extra, I don’t need it.” </p><p>The old woman smiles, bidding Tess goodbye when she quickly leaves the shop. She’s literally chugging this water, but she still feels hot. Goddamn it. Only other option is to sleep whatever this is off. That sucks, she was hoping to have the city to herself. Well, she could always just sneak out at night. Eh, but does she want to? Not really, she’s just too overwhelmed. She feels gross, passing cars are too loud. Home is quiet, just sleep.</p><p>By the time she’s halfway there, she finally realizes her vision is falling in and out of focus, and the last ten minutes is a blur. That is… That is not good. Leaning against a lamppost, she holds her head and groans. Nausea sucks, and she <em>never</em> gets like this. There’s no sickness going around at school right now, so what the hell was this about?</p><p><em>Maybe it was what I touched?</em> No, no that’s not- it can’t be that. Hng, just get home, sleep, feel better soon. More blur, no memories of the walk are retained. Walking up the stairs in her apartment is so hard now. Fumbling with the door, she slugs in with a hung head.</p><p>“You’re back early.” Her mother remarks from the couch. Tess just murmurs a greeting, lazily waving before she disappears into her room. What day is it today? Friday? Hopefully. God, she’s so not ready to be sick. Her bag is thrown off, her shoes haphazardly kicked away. She doesn’t even take off her hoodie before flopping down face first into the dent she’s made in her mattress. Blackout hits her like a train, within seconds she’s out like a light.</p><p>Sleep it off, feel better tomorrow.</p><p> </p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0003"><h2>3. Good first impressions</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>longer, slightly filler. Friendship is blooming. (notes are still messed up for some reason)</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>“Tessa! Honey, get up, it’s nearly noon.”</p><p>A hand gently grabs the girl’s shoulder, shaking lightly. Groaning awake, she blinks groggy eyes open and gives her mother a glare, but it’s fleeting. Noon? Christ, it’s <em>noon</em>? When did she go to sleep last night? An incoherent murmur escapes her as she hoists herself up, throwing her legs over the side of her bed. The world spins, and for a second she almost falls back down. She still feels hot- and hungry as hell, ow. A cold hand touches Tess’ forehead, making her frown and recoil, “You’re hot, are you feeling ok?” </p><p>“I’m fine, just slept in the jacket.” Tess irritably reassures her mother, pushing the hand away. The touch was much, even though it wasn’t. She's not usually this sensitive. Every sense has been cranked up to eleven. Her mother seems unconvinced, still analyzing her face, looking concerned, “I’m fine, mom, really.” She says more gently.</p><p>That seems to work, as it gets the woman to retract, “Alright, well come down and get some food, I’m going to be gone for a little bit, something happened with work.” Thank christ. Well, it kinda sucks that she’s busy on the weekend, but that gives Tess more ability to have free reign over today. </p><p>She nods, wriggling out of the heavy coat, “Hope everything’s alright.” It’s lame empathy, but she was never good at expressing it anyway. She’s met with a shrug, which either means it’s nothing or it’s something and it’s also not too great. Hell, she should probably get her mom something today. Maybe some candy, that always seemed to cheer her up.</p><p>The woman leaves, closing the door behind her. Tess gets up with a sigh, putting her mismatch shoes back on, opting for a lighter jacket instead. Still black, but loose, thin. It’s just a <em>bit</em> too big, but that’s exactly what she loves about it. Some of the uncomfortable heat goes away, which is nice. She thinks she can handle going out today, just be mindful. </p><p>Before she leaves, she nabs her dark blue beanie from off the coat hook on her door, pulling it over her head- keeping some hair out of her face for once. Instantly turning left, she runs her unnaturally cold, clammy hands under some warm water, then goes to brush her teeth.</p><p>For a good thirty seconds she’s not looking at the mirror, but when she does? Her eyes are royally <em>screwed</em>, black veins crawled up her neck and onto her face. Her teeth were messed up too, all sharp and almost canine-like. </p><p>Of course she screams when she sees it, jumping like she’d been attacked. As soon as she blinks though, it’s gone. What in the everloving fuck was that? “Tessa? Are you ok?” Her mother calls from downstairs.</p><p>Tessa’s eyes blink rapidly, “Just a spider!” Is her excuse. That didn’t happen, whatever that was, it just didn’t happen at all. Ignore it and it’ll just go away, exactly like with everything else she had to deal with. Quickly whipping off her face with a towel, no more looks at the mirror are made, and that little scare was pushed from her memories. Written off as just another weird hallucination. </p><p>Rushing down the stairs, it looks like she’s is getting out before her mom, “Bye ma, have fun at work!” She leaves no room for any chat. Her head is so flighty, no music, just… Nothing. She absorbs the sounds, and the sights, and pretty much everything as if it’s the first time she’s seen the city. God, why does she feel so <em>weird</em>?</p><p>An answer comes in the form of her stomach growling, pain shoots right into her gut. Ah, right, she’s hungry. Subway sounds delightful, so that’s where she heads as soon as she gets down the steps of the complex. </p><p>The park is quickly passed by, too many kids, too much noise. Jeez, <em>way</em> too much noise. One of them shrieks and laughs, and it feels like nails on a chalkboard. Green eyes nearly glare at the kid who screamed, in fact they do, just a little bit. Not paying attention to what’s in front of her makes her bump shoulders with a guy in a suit, who gives her a <em>‘what the hell?’</em> gesture and continues on his way. Prick. </p><p>A group of loud ass motorcycles pass, and as if headed straight for her, she flinches away from the road. The rumbling is so intense her very bones are vibrating, though normally she loves the sound of bikes. All this stress isn't like her, she used to handle this perfectly, what changed?</p><p>Tess questions herself the rest of the way there, stepping into a thankfully empty Subway. Taking her spot at the counter, she gets something rather hefty. More meat than normal, for a moment she glances at the sandwich, feeling almost <em>scared</em> of it. That’s… A lot of food. Food is good though, and she’s super hungry. Unreasonably hungry, it’s kinda stupid. Whatever, just eat as much of this as she can and take it home for later. Subway was great like that.</p><p>Completely ignoring the soda, she pays for the lunch, trotting out of the shop. Mood lifted, that’s good. Ugh, but the park is <em>infested</em>, hopefully she can clamber her way up to the second perch she’s got in this area. </p><p>Oh joy, it is accessible. The creaky metal ladder is down, leading up to the metal platforms that zig-zag up the side of this random building. After climbing up, she sits against the wall, pulling her food from her bag and eyeing it, intimidated. Well, she’s intimidated until she takes her first bite, then it’s gone within five minutes. Whew, satisfaction, Subway is never that good, but she’s not complaining. Her body relaxes, her eyes reading the screen of her phone as she mindlessly scrolls. Occasionally a bubble of laughter is let out, but nothing more than that. </p><p>
  <strong> <em>“Still hungry.” </em> </strong>
</p><p>A very clear, deep, almost inhuman voice echoes off her skull. It made her jump worse than earlier, so bad she nearly drops her phone, “Wh- what?” Tess asks no one, looking around to see if anyone is near her. Nope. She’s alone up here, just like normal. Ok, that was freaking weird. Uneasily, her scrolling resumes, until- </p><p><em><strong>“Hungry.”</strong></em> </p><p>That goddamn voice again, making her jump. Fumbling with her phone, it goes back into her bag, “What- why, why hungry? I just ate a whole sandwich; I’m not hungry.” Who is she talking to? She’s looking at a wall, not a person. Is she talking to herself? This is stupid, this is weird and whatever it is, it’s just not happening.</p><p><strong><em>“Want food.”</em></strong> </p><p>“Christ- ok, fine, <em>fine</em> food. Got it.” There’s no reasoning with the voice in her head. Awkwardly, she shuffles down the ladder, her brain feeling rushed and occupied, where the hell does she go? What food does she- no, what food does this <em>voice</em> want? She feels like a lunatic, the feverish heat has returned, the world is overwhelming, “What uh, what do we- you, er, what do we want?” Tess cringes as she asks, smacking herself in the face for even entertaining the idea she’s talking to someone tangible.</p><p><strong><em>“Bird.”</em></strong> </p><p>What? A bird? Chicken? “You want chicken? Uh, ok alright I can do that.” At least she assumes that’s what the voice means. Bird could just mean bird, but that’s disgusting, chicken is much more appetizing than a pigeon. Hmm, which place has good chicken though?</p><p><strong><em>“Bird, there.”</em></strong> </p><p>The voice cuts in, interrupting her train of thought, startling her again. A few meters away, there’s a dove eating something from the ground. Ok, nope, no, absolutely not, “What? <em>No</em>- I’m not eating a damn bird, chicken is better, trust me.” People give her weird looks, and suddenly she remembers she’s talking to herself like she’s doped up on meth.</p><p><strong><em>“Chicken bird?”</em></strong> </p><p>She’s never gonna get used to that voice, “Yes. Yes, chicken is a bird, it’s good, very good.” Her pace is uneven, erratic. She can’t tell if she’s processing things inhumanly fast or not at all. Where is chicken? Ah, yes, there, that local place has some killer wings. Only problem is the small line of three people. How patient is this voice?</p><p>Stopping behind a random man, she fidgets with her hands. Her mind is very much unalone right now, running two trains of thought, only one is coming out clear. Something stirs, a flicker of confusion crosses her face.</p><p><strong><em>“Why waiting?”</em></strong> </p><p>“Because there’s a line, other people got here first.” She answers as quietly as possible. She is painfully aware how weird she probably looks, talking to herself. Not like she can tell people she’s just casually chatting with the demonic voice in her head. Cause that’s not normal at all. Even for San Francisco. </p><p>Eventually she gets to the counter, ordering and leaving, does she go back to the perch? Yes, sounds good. The voice doesn’t protest, in fact the business of her mind has slowed, she isn’t too hot anymore and things don’t grit on her nerves as much. Whew, good. That’s better. Climbing back up and sitting down, she opens the foam container, intending to just mindlessly munch on these. Tess fully expects to have some to take home, but the voice clearly has other plans. </p><p>Instead, the chicken is <em>also</em> devoured, each and every wing. Even the <em>bones</em> are eaten, which makes her very concerned for her health, once she snaps out of the feral feeding frenzy that just happened, “Uhm, anything else?” </p><p>
  <strong> <em>“Am happy now, thank you.”</em> </strong>
</p><p>At least the voice is polite. It almost makes her laugh, really. It’s speech is a bit basic, but luckily still very clear. The lingering feeling of heat goes away entirely, she feels human again. Finally, a breath of relief. So it’s not sickness, it’s this thing just being hungry…. Whatever this thing is, “You’re welcome.” She nods, shifting to prop one leg up, getting comfy where she is. The sky is blue, the city swells with life, she can take in the beauty without it being only chaos. With calmness comes curiosity, why not have a talk with the voice in your head? She’s already deemed herself batshit crazy.</p><p>“So… You got a name?” Still feels stupid as hell to ask, but what else can she do? She’s got a name, does it know? Oh boy, that’s not exactly a fun thought. How deep into her head is this thing? She's not really one to enjoy someone prodding around her psyche.  </p><p>
  <strong> <em>“Yes. I am Lurker.”</em> </strong>
</p><p>Huh, ok, so it <em>does</em> have a name. It sounds masculine, sort of. Honestly she can’t tell, but she feels bad calling it ‘it’ all the time. ‘He’ feels better, “So, Lurker, whatcha doin’ in my head?” Can he catch the sarcasm? She’s really just joking, but she does mind. Mainly because her head is where her secrets are. Privacy is peace of mind, a peace she really does need.</p><p>
  <strong> <em>“I am within, must be here to be safe.”</em> </strong>
</p><p>… What does that mean? “I- I don’t understand.” It’s all she can really say, her brows crease in confusion. What is he? <em>Where</em> is he? Where did he come from?</p><p>A black spot forms on her shoulder, sprouting from it is a consistent tendril. It’s all black, and if the light hits it just right, there’s just a tiny bit of purple iridescence. At the end of the tendril, a face appears, forming in the tar-like goo. White eyes, huge white eyes, and a mouth below them. Lots of teeth, each surprisingly white, not very crooked. Holy shit, what the hell is she looking at? </p><p>Tess blinks in shock at the creature that just formed from her shoulder, “I- uh, hello?” </p><p>He too blinks, “<strong>Hello.</strong>” It- no, he, Lurker greets her, his voice isn’t just in her head anymore. That’s freaky, “<strong>You are host, I need host to live. You are perfect match.</strong>” He explains simply, still in that basic broken english. Despite that, she understands. He’s the thing she poked yesterday in the alley. He’s been here since then. No wonder she was so hot. <em>He</em> was hungry.</p><p>So, he’s a parasite then? That’s really the only thing she knows to equate him to, but don’t parasites hurt the hosts? “So… You’re a parasite?” She tries to be inoffensive as she asks, hoping he doesn’t understand the implications of being a parasite.</p><p>Pearly white eyes widen, his head shakes, “<strong>No, I no mean hurt. Parasites hurt host, I do not.</strong>” He sounds apologetic, maybe worried. He doesn’t want to be seen as a parasite, that’s clear enough.</p><p>He’s not exactly a parasite then. He’s got parasitic <em>qualities</em>, but not exactly completely one. Parasites aren’t conscious either, they’re just… Simple, and while Lurker talks simply, he’s got enough of a grasp to be able to talk with her. She’s still torn on whether or not to just start accepting this, though. How’d he get here? “Ok, then how’d you get here?” </p><p>Lurker looks up to the sky, then looks back down to Tess, “<strong>From outer space, on human ship. I escaped bad place.</strong>”</p><p>A bad place? That’s vague as hell, there’s lots of bad places. As if sifting through her memories, she recalls reading about something the now shut down Life foundation did. Something about space, human tests. It was all a bit much to take in, and she didn’t care enough to really remember it until now. There’s pieces missing, she doesn’t get the clear, full story. Twitter won’t reliably fill her in, but Lurker might be able to, “When did you get out of this bad place?”</p><p>“<strong>Long time ago, human months.</strong>” He answers. She’s gonna have to teach him how time works, that’s not exactly something she looks forward to. Her concept of time is barely existent. Human months, but how many? She wants to say at least three, 'cause for a while the city was very busy with something happening. What <em>exactly</em> is unknown to her. Did it have something to do with Lurker getting out? Possibly.</p><p>Running a hand down her face, the girl sighs, letting herself absorb the information given. Lurk doesn’t mean harm, at least he <em>says</em> he doesn’t. She’ll take a risk and believe him. Is he… Physical like that? As a noodle, just coming out of her shoulder. She pokes him where a nose would be, snickering as his face retracts like a snail. He’s squishy, “You look more like a Squishy.” Nickname already given.</p><p>There’s just something about a creature being inside your head that makes you connect with them faster. There’s not really any other option other than to connect. Hell, he even said she was a perfect match. That’s good, right?</p><p>The dark figure looks confused, “<strong>What is squishy?</strong>” </p><p>… Ok so maybe he’s just a tiny bit cute, “<em>You</em> are.” </p><p>“<strong>No, I am Lurker.</strong>” </p><p>Yup, sarcasm and jest goes right over his head. Tess lets herself smile, “Nope, you’re Squishy.” </p><p>She chuckles as she shifts, packing up the container that used to hold the chicken. Sliding down the ladder, Lurker retracts back into her shoulder- painlessly. That surprised her, shouldn’t something like that hurt like a bitch? No complaints, she’s glad it doesn’t hurt. He did say he doesn't hurt her, so it looks like he's telling the truth.</p><p>The bag and container are tossed into a nearby trash can, her beanie is adjusted, “You wanna head back home?” They don’t really <em>need</em> to go back, there’s still plenty to do. Mrs. Chen’s place should be close, actually, she could pick up a snack. A snack right after a huge sandwich and immense amounts of chicken. She doesn't feel full, she just isn't hungry. Snacks sound wonderful.</p><p>
  <em> <strong>“Want to explore more.” </strong> </em>
</p><p>His voice has returned to within her mind, it’s still a little jarring. He’s very present, his voice is bolded. That’ll take some time to get used to, “Right, exploring it is.”</p><p>Walking to Mrs. Chen’s shop doesn’t take long, once again a man leaves, leather jacket. Same guy from yesterday? Maybe. She swears she sees him glance over his shoulder just as she enters the store. Was he looking at her? No, probably someone else.</p><p>The old woman greets her, to which she greets back. Something for mom and dad, considering she didn’t get anything last time she was here. A small bag of chips, gummy worms and a king size KitKat are all placed on the counter after barely a moment of searching. The KitKat is for her parents, the rest is for her. The two exchange a few words, then Tess goes on her way. </p><p>She needs a change of scenery, stopping by a place she’s always wanted to get on top of. The roof has to be flat, but there’s no ladder up. It’s gotta be so nice up there, though. Going into the alley beside the place, she looks up, knowing she won’t be able to climb it.</p><p><em>Unless</em>… “I don’t suppose you could give me a lift, could you?” She asks Lurk, glancing out to the street, worried about looking suspicious. Without controlling it, she jumps up, all the way up to the roof, falling on her ass when she lands, “Thanks.” Her gratitude is laughed out breathlessly, blindsided by the ability to scale a <em>three story building</em> in a single leap. </p><p>That was fun.</p><p>An hour or two passes, the sky darkens and the city enters a twilight phase. The two talk endlessly, Lurker learns Tessa’s name, she gets to know a bit more about him. He’s younger than the rest of his kind- the rest of which were also here, on earth, and near the city too. Where they are now is completely unknown. He’s sneaky, <em>very</em> picky with his hosts and apparently he thinks she’s the only one he could fully connect to. It’s endearing, honestly. </p><p>Green eyes look up to the sky, “What’s space like?” She asks, almost longingly. </p><p>The creature hums from within, “<strong><em>I did not see it, was trapped in dark place. I think it is nice.</em></strong>” </p><p>“Me too.” She sighs, letting her head lean back on a vent box. A large part of her still doesn’t want to go home. So she doesn’t, instead she stands up with a grunt, “Ok so if you can make me jump up a three story building, what else can you do?” </p><p>
  <em> <strong>“I am sorry if I scare.” </strong> </em>
</p><p>Wait, what? She doesn’t get a chance to ask what he means, within seconds her body is consumed by black. Lurker takes over, forming fully around her. She can still see, and very clearly too. She felt like she was in a stasis. It’s calm, oddly secure. She’s not exactly in control, but she’s not worried, “<em>Alright, take us home.</em>”</p><p>Oh, <em>her</em> voice is the one that’s internal now, Lurker’s hum of acknowledgement was from him, out there. That’s interesting. This whole thing is interesting, and weird and absolutely crazy, and now that she’s got a moment to think about it; this is insane. An Alien from space, who behaves like a parasite until attached to another living being, is now leaping from the building they were just on? Lurk is fast, running on all fours, from rooftop to rooftop. Never once does he trip or falter, it’s like he’s made for this.</p><p><em>It’s fucking awesome.</em> </p><p>Skidding to a halt on top of a satellite dish, white eyes scan the surrounding area. It doesn’t catch what Tess sees through the much clearer vision of her other-worldly companion, “<em>Wait- Lurk, over there.</em>” She can’t point, but he knows where to look. A good ways away, they both see a silhouette. It’s moving, coming closer. Headed right for Lurker. </p><p>Then the figure stops, perched in a similar manner. Narrowing his eyes, the creature can pick out some details now. From inside, Tess can feel him panic. Quickly, he darts away, continuing his run back home. Back to her apartment, “<em>Who was that?</em>” She asks, sensing his urgency.</p><p>“<strong>I do not know, someone dangerous.</strong>” His tone is unsure, nervous. </p><p>They make it home quickly, the dark form retracts back into the girl when they arrive at the steps of the complex's porch. She rushes upstairs after putting the KitKat on the table, kicking off her shoes and putting her bag on the desk chair beside her bed. She flops down on her bed, going over every single moment of today in her head.</p><p>Yesterday she touched a weird thing, felt sick, went to bed, woke up hungry as fuck in the middle of the day and somehow that ended with her meeting the alien that <em>lives inside her body</em>. That’s the weirdest goddamn thing she’s ever heard. Hell, she’d possibly even befriended said Alien in one day. What on earth does she do now?</p><p>She’ll have to figure that out later, right now she can still tell that Lurk is nervous, “Hey, relax, it’s not bad. We’re fine, we weren’t followed.” Her words calm him down a bit, letting her get back up and shed the lighter jacket she’s got on. Then she pops out of her room to brush her teeth, quickly returning to the den and tossing herself back into bed. Christ today was <em>a lot</em>. Is it all just one massive fit of hysteria? Maybe she’s in a coma and just dreaming of this happening. That would make sense, possibly. Makes more sense than being a host to an <em>alien</em>.</p><p>“Well, uh, goodnight. Don’t do anything crazy while I’m asleep.” She says, pulling her blanket up over her shoulders. </p><p>“<strong><em>Good night</em></strong>.” Lurk parrots back, settling down within her bones. </p><p>Tomorrow will be very interesting.</p><p> </p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0004"><h2>4. Quickly adjusting</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Takes place over the course of two days, Lurk and Tess grow closer. School comes into play. Shortish.</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Nearly half the day has passed, and instead of going out to run around the city, Tess has huddled up in bed with her laptop in front of her. Scrolling through google, trying to find things on the Life Foundation. It’s the only place she knows to look, or at least it’s where she thinks to start. Nothing but reddit conspiracy theories and half-baked articles have popped up.</p><p>It’s ten past two, she’s been up since early in the AM. A grumble of disappointment is let out, her eyes finally fall from the screen, “Nothing useful is comin’ up.” She absentmindedly states, even though she knows Lurk is watching, “When you got out, did you see where you came from?”</p><p>
  <em> <strong>“Big building.”</strong> </em>
</p><p><em>Helpful</em>. Her eyes roll, the laptop is closed and set to the side on her desk, “I think that’s enough attempted mystery solving for one day. Let’s get out of here before we lose daylight, yeah?” She already knows the answer, being compelled to stand up and get her jacket. The heavier one is put on, making her hesitate, “Woah, I don’t wanna end up overheating in this thing.” She says, worried about those fever attacks.</p><p><strong><em>“Hot is only when I am hungry. I cannot control. I am sorry.”</em></strong> </p><p>Ok, so it’s <em>just </em>for when he’s hungry, not for stress or anything else “Don’t apologize bud, it’s alright. Just let me know when you get hungry before the fever sets in.” She reassures, pulling the hoodie on. </p><p>
  <em> <strong>“Ok, I will tell.”</strong> </em>
</p><p>Avoiding that sickly heat is definitely great, a smile forms on her face as she slings her bag over her shoulder, across her torso. Black shoes this time, blue beanie on. She heard today was going to be on the chilly side, which was great. Not many cold days lately, maybe winter’s finally rolling around. Eh, probably not.</p><p>Instinctively she goes for the door, but she glances over her shoulder at the single window that she has in her room. It’s big enough for her to climb through, and it’s been awhile since she’d taken that path. Why the hell not? Skipping from the door to her window across her room, it’s wiggled open, letting her crouch through and close it quietly. Now there’s just a matter of getting down. She eyes the slight descent down, knowing she’ll bust a shin trying to make the jump, “Come out for a second, I need help getting down.” </p><p>His reaction time is on point, within seconds the darkness consumes her, allowing Lurk to gain control. He jumps across the alley, digging his claws into the brick wall, slowing his very noisy decent down to the ground. As soon as his feet touch the ground, he retreats, shrinking into Tess’ skin. She lets out a huff, trotting out of the alley and onto the sidewalk like nothing weird just happened, “Thanks.” </p><p>After they make another run by Mrs. Chen’s (who noticed they’d been there rather often) the two decide to really explore. She’d only stayed within her little area of the city, not leaving the mental barrier she’d made. Now that she had a method of very fast transportation, going out further didn’t scare her as much as it used to. Why not go on a little adventure? The idea clearly reached Lurk, who seemed to be on board as well. </p><p>Off they go, halfway across the city within an hour. There they wandered, checking out little stores, getting snacks and chatting constantly. Night falls, which means the dark being that is Lurker can actually come out and have a second to breathe. She wonders what it’s like, stuck in someone, only able to see what they see. He’s built for it, so maybe it doesn’t bother him, but to her, it sounds horrible. </p><p>Bounding up the side of a skyscraper, Lurker launched forward and up, landing on the very top of it, perched like a gargouille. He feels happy, <em>genuinely</em> happy, he’s even smiling in that weird grin he always does, “<em>Have you ever been able to run around like this?”</em>  Tess asks, her voice internal.</p><p>“<strong>It has been long time, must have perfect match.</strong>” He says, looking around at the glowing city below. </p><p>“<em>You guys really depend on good pairs, huh</em>?” She remarks, watching the world with him. It’s beautiful. So many lights, the noise of life. She’d never really felt connected to the world before, having gone through life mostly alone. She’d been struggling to find excitement, to find <em>fun</em>. She tried to make it a few times, but that never worked. This city is huge, and only now does she realize that. </p><p>The Alien nods, “<strong>We die without host.</strong>” </p><p>Well that’s grim. She feels… Sad for him. How long had he gone without a match? She wants to ask, but keeping the topic so dull like this is ruining the view. </p><p>After more time exploring, they finally return, coming in through her window due to the fact they got home after midnight. Hopefully her parents aren’t too upset, she’ll just have to find out tomorrow. Ew, tomorrow being <em>Monday</em>. Shit- Lurk. Oh boy, that’s gonna be fun to handle. Knowing she needs to be prepared, Tess quickly brushes her teeth and goes straight to bed, wishing her weird friend goodnight. </p><p>Morning comes, heavy backpack on- but now it’s not so heavy. Just another pro of having an Alien friend. Trotting down the stairs of her apartment, she rubs her cold hands together, “Ok, we need to have a tiny itty-bitty chat about school.” </p><p><em><strong>“School?”</strong></em> Lurk asks, confused.</p><p>Right, he doesn’t know human things, “School is where I go to… Learn, technically. I go there five days each week, and until two-thirty pm, I’m stuck there. There are lots of other kids there that can’t know you exist.” She feels bad about making him have to hide, but what else can she do? Her situation is not normal.</p><p>
  <em> <strong>“I hide?” </strong> </em>
</p><p>“Yes, yeah uh you gotta hide. And we can’t exactly talk during classes, but good news: there are breaks where we can talk. I brought extra snacks, mostly for you.” She did. Crackers, chips, blueberries. Stuff she knows he likes. Hopefully teachers let her eat in class, normally they’re chill about it.</p><p>She starts noticing other kids around, some walking in tight groups, others in pairs and a few going solo. She looked solo, but was very much not, “Ok, the hidden time starts now. Talk soon, ok?” </p><p>
  <em> <strong>“Yes, I hide. Talk soon.” </strong> </em>
</p><p>School passes by much quicker. That’s the only good noticeable change. She didn’t get much done, that’s normal, though the tapping of pencils and the constant leg bouncing and loud talking of other kids made her jumpy. Lurk really does not like the school setting. He fidgeted, how? Tess did. She chewed on her pen, scribbled in a single corner on her paper, she stabbed her eraser until it was all smudged up. She never does that. Lurk was the one who did, though, and honestly she understood. It’s how she felt internally. Of course he’d feel the same, they share a wavelength. </p><p>Luckily, everything else went by without a hitch, now she returns home to dump her backpack and get her messenger bag. Her parents aren’t home, cool, no minor obligation to return on time. </p><p><strong><em>“More snacks?”</em></strong> </p><p>Tess laughs as she gets onto the beaten path, headed directly to that wonderful little shop. Mrs. Chen’s.</p><p> </p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Welcome to my self-indulgent dumpster fire of a story. I rewatched Venom tonight, as of writing this at least and needless to say, I just really need more content of this world. This is the prologue, taking place right when Eddie gets Venom. In case that wasn't obvious enough. Solidifying those connections early. Hope you guys like this! I know I will ^^</p></blockquote></div></div>
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